The US Department of Energy (DOE) recently initiated the Industrial Waste Reduction Program, which seeks to develop and commercialize waste reduction technologies and practices that will reduce industrial energy use. The Industrial Waste Reduction Program, like the other programs under DOE's Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT), works with industry to focus research and development resources according to industry needs and market opportunities. The Program consists of five fundamental elements: industrial waste characterization, opportunity assessments, technology research and development, technology and information transfer, and, institutional analysis. This report is a product of efforts initiated under the first of these program elements, Industrial Waste Characterization. Its purpose is to increase understanding of the types and magnitudes of industrial waste streams. In particular, this report presents the key characteristics of selected waste, energy, and economic data sources in an effort to clarify the scope, consistency, and limitations of the data. It is expected that this information will be used in another element of the program, Opportunity Assessments. That effort will identify priority technology needs by evaluating the available data; expert advice from industry, government, and academia; and independent analyses. 33 refs.

Although production of U/sub 3/O/sub 8/ declined only slightly in 1980, New Mexico's share of domestic production has declined from 48% in 1976 to 35% in 1980. Production projections indicate a continued decline in 1981 and lower production until at least 1984. New Mexico has 41% of total domestic reserves producible in the $50-per-lb cost category. In keeping with the anticipated steady depletion of reserves, production of crude oil in New Mexico was 69.9 million bls, a 6.3% decline in production from 1979. Condensate production of 5.4 million bbls in 1980, however, represented an increase of 7% from 1979 production. Although natural gas production was the lowest since 1970 and declined by 2.6% from 1979 production, 1980 was the 15th year that production exceeded 1 trillion cu ft. Despite declines in production, the valuation of oil and gas production has increased significantly with oil sales doubling from the previous year and gas sales increasing by $409 million because of higher prices. Reserves have been estimated to be 959 million bbls of crude oil and 17.667 trillion cu ft of natural gas. Production of 19.5 million short tons of coal in 1980 represented a 33% increase over 1979 production and an …

This report provides background information and potential issues for Congress on the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), a relatively inexpensive Navy surface combatant equipped with modular "plug-and-fight" mission packages for countering mines, small boats, and diesel-electric submarines, particularly in littoral (i.e., near-shore) waters.

Report that provides an overview of the Court's holding with respect to the individual mandate of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) under the Commerce Clause and the Taxing Power. It also addresses possible implications of the decision on existing federal law and future legislation.

This report discusses the reports of a mass casualty chemical weapons attack in the suburbs of Damascus and the possible punitive U.S. military action against the Asad regime.

This report discusses the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Laws based on suspect classifications such as race or gender, however, typically receive heightened scrutiny and require a stronger, if not compelling, state interest to justify the classification.

This list of about 150 congressional liaison offices is intended to help congressional offices in placing telephone calls and addressing correspondence to government agencies. In each case, the information was supplied by the agency itself and is current as of the date of publication. Entries are arranged alphabetically in four sections: legislative branch; judicial branch; executive branch; and agencies, boards, and commissions.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Wind-generated electricity--wind power--has the potential to provide electricity to homes and businesses without causing air pollution or depleting nonrenewable resources, unlike electricity generated by fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil). Furthermore, because wind power has no fuel costs--wind power depends on the energy of the wind--its operating costs are lower than the costs for power produced from fossil fuels, although its capital costs are greater. Wind power relies on frequent, strong winds to turn the blades of power-generating turbines. In the United States, a wind turbine with generating capacity of 2 megawatts (MW), placed on a tower situated on a farm, ranch, or other rural land, can generate enough electricity in a year--about 6 million kilowatt hours (kWh)--to serve the needs of 500 to 600 average U.S. households. In addition to environmental benefits, wind power has the potential to contribute significantly to America's growing energy needs while providing economic benefits to farms and communities in rural America. In this connection, the Department of Energy's (DOE) "Wind Powering America" program has set a goal of producing 5 percent of the nation's electricity from wind by 2020. …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The DD(X) destroyer--a surface ship intended to expand the Navy's littoral warfare capabilities--depends on the development of a number of new technologies to meet its requirements. The Navy intends to authorize detailed design and construction of the first ship in March 2005. GAO's past work has shown that developing advanced systems that rely heavily on new technologies requires a disciplined, knowledge-based approach to ensure cost, schedule, and performance targets are met. Best practices show, for example, that a program should not be launched before critical technologies are sufficiently matured--that is, the technology has been demonstrated in its intended environment--and that a design should be stabilized by the critical design review. Given the complexity of the DD(X) system and the number of new technologies involved, GAO was asked to describe the Navy's acquisition strategy for DD(X) and how it relates to best practices, and how efforts to mature critical technologies are proceeding."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, the Privacy Rule provided new protections regarding the confidentiality of health information and established new responsibilities for providers, health plans, and other entities to protect such information. GAO reviewed (1) the experience of providers and health plans in implementation; (2) the experience of public health entities, researchers, and representatives of patients in obtaining access to health information; and (3) the extent to which patients appear to be aware of their rights."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2007, domestic and foreign companies received over $75 billion from the sale of oil and gas produced from federal lands and waters, according to the Department of the Interior (Interior), and these companies paid the federal government about $9 billion in royalties for this oil and gas production. The government also collects other revenues in rents, taxes, and other fees, and the sum of all revenues received is referred to as the "government take." The terms and conditions under which the government collects these revenues are referred to as the "oil and gas fiscal system." This report (1) evaluates government take and the attractiveness for investors of the federal oil and gas fiscal system, (2) evaluates how the absence of flexibility in this system has led to large foregone revenues from oil and gas production on federal lands and waters, and (3) assesses what Interior has done to monitor the performance and appropriateness of the federal oil and gas fiscal system. To address these issues, we reviewed expert studies and interviewed government and industry officials."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "While prescription drugs have become an increasingly important part of health care for the elderly, more than one-quarter of all Medicare beneficiaries have no prescription drug coverage. Over the past decade, private companies and not-for-profit organizations have sponsored prescription drug discount cards that offer discounts from the prices the elderly would otherwise have to pay for their prescriptions. These cards are typically administered by pharmacy benefit managers (PBM). Pharmaceutical manufacturers also sponsor and administer their own discount cards. The Administration has been interested in endorsing specific drug cards for Medicare beneficiaries to make the discounts more widely available. Legislative proposals in the Senate and House of Representatives have included drug cards as a means to lower prescription drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries. GAO was asked to examine how existing drug discount cards work and the prices available to card holders. Specifically, GAO evaluated the extent to which PBM-administered drug discount cards offer savings off non-card prices at 40 pharmacies in California, North Dakota, and Washington, D.C., and the differences between PBM-administered cards and cards sponsored by pharmaceutical manufacturers."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Some surveys suggest that as many as two-thirds of American households have donated money to charitable organizations in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11. Although it may be difficult to precisely tally the amount of money raised, 34 of the larger charities have reported raising an estimated $2.4 billion since September 11. Of the estimated $2.4 billion reported collected by the larger charities, about two-thirds were reported to have been distributed. Fund distribution rates vary widely among these charities, in part because of differences in their operating mission. Charities reported distributing these funds for a broad range of assistance to the families of those killed or injured, for those more indirectly affected through the loss of their jobs or homes, and for disaster relief workers. To distribute aid, charities had to make extensive efforts to identify victims and survivors as there were no uniform contact lists for families of victims; charity officials also said privacy issues affected the sharing of information among charities. Charities also faced challenges in providing aid to non-English speaking people in need of assistance; some charities have focused their efforts …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is based on principles of openness and accountability in government. FOIA establishes that federal agencies must provide the public with access to government information, unless the information falls into one of nine specifically exempted categories (for example, certain information compiled for law enforcement purposes). However, agencies can use their discretion to disclose information even if it falls into one of the nine exempted categories; this is known as a "discretionary disclosure." At the beginning of a new administration, the Attorney General traditionally issues a policy memorandum regarding FOIA, including policy on discretionary disclosure. Attorney General Ashcroft issued such a memorandum on October 12, 2001, replacing Attorney General Reno's 1993 FOIA memorandum. GAO was asked to determine (1) to what extent, if any, Department of Justice guidance for agencies on FOIA implementation has changed as a result of the new policy; (2) the views of FOIA officers at 25 agencies regarding the new policy and its effects, if any; and (3) the views of FOIA officers at 25 agencies regarding available FOIA guidance."

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) fiscal year (FY) 2000 budget request, focusing on: (1) whether HUD has the capacity to implement, and adequate justification to support, the new or significantly expanded programs and initiatives included in its budget request; (2) the potential for HUD to use available unexpended balances in some programs to reduce its need for new funding in other programs; and (3) whether HUD adequately justified its use of or requests for funds in the following five areas: (a) disaster assistance; (b) salaries and expenses; (c) Schedule C and non-career Senior Executive Service positions; (d) rural housing and economic development; and (e) international housing initiatives."

We present a new tree-level matrix element generator, based on the color dressed Berends-Giele recursive relations. We discuss two new algorithms for phase space integration, dedicated to be used with large multiplicities and color sampling.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) are conducting research to investigate the feasibility of producing mixed alcohols from biomass-derived synthesis gas (syngas). PNNL is tasked with obtaining commercially available or preparing promising mixed-alcohol catalysts and screening them in a laboratory-scale reactor system. Commercially available catalysts and the most promising experimental catalysts are provided to NREL for testing using a slipstream from a pilot-scale biomass gasifier. From the standpoint of producing C2+ alcohols as the major product, it appears that the rhodium catalyst is the best choice in terms of both selectivity and space-time yield (STY). However, unless the rhodium catalyst can be improved to provide minimally acceptable STYs for commercial operation, mixed alcohol synthesis will involve significant production of other liquid coproducts. The modified Fischer-Tropsch catalyst shows the most promise for providing both an acceptable selectivity to C2+ alcohols and total liquid STY. However, further optimization of the Fischer-Tropsch catalysts to improve selectivity to higher alcohols is highly desired. Selection of a preferred catalyst will likely entail a decision on the preferred coproduct slate. No other catalysts tested appear amenable to the significant improvements needed for acceptable STYs.

ILC work at Illinois has concentrated primarily on technical issues relating to the design of the accelerator. Because many of the problems to be resolved require a working knowledge of classical mechanics and electrodynamics, most of our research projects lend themselves well to the participation of undergraduate research assistants. The undergraduates in the group are scientists, not technicians, and find solutions to problems that, for example, have stumped PhD-level staff elsewhere. The ILC Reference Design Report calls for 6.7 km circumference damping rings (which prepare the beams for focusing) using “conventional” stripline kickers driven by fast HV pulsers. Our primary goal was to determine the suitability of the 16 MeV electron beam in the AØ region at Fermilab for precision kicker studies.We found that the low beam energy and lack of redundancy in the beam position monitor system complicated the analysis of our data. In spite of these issues we concluded that the precision we could obtain was adequate to measure the performance and stability of a production module of an ILC kicker, namely 0.5%. We concluded that the kicker was stable to an accuracy of ~2.0% and that we could measure this precision to an accuracy of ~0.5%. As …

The program began on August 1, 2003 and ended on July 31, 2007. The goal of the project was to optimize a high-temperature polybenzimidazole (PBI) membrane to meet the performance, durability, and cost targets required for stationary fuel cell applications. These targets were identified in the Fuel Cell section (3.4) of DOE’s Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Infrastructure Technologies Program Multi-Year Research, Development and Demonstration Plan. A membrane that operates at high temperatures is important to the fuel cell industry because it is insensitive to carbon monoxide (a poison to low-temperature fuel cells), and does not require complex water management strategies. Together, these two benefits greatly simplify the fuel cell system. As a result, the high-temperature fuel cell system realizes a cost benefit as the number of components is reduced by nearly 30%. There is also an inherent reliability benefit as components such as humidifiers and pumps for water management are unnecessary. Furthermore, combined heat and power (CHP) systems may be the best solution for a commercial, grid-connected, stationary product that must offer a cost benefit to the end user. For a low-temperature system, the quality of the heat supplied is insufficient to meet consumer needs and comfort requirements, so peak …

CRADA No. 95-CR-09 among the LITCO--now Bechtel BWXT Idaho, LLC; a private company, Neutron Therapies Limited Liability Company, NTL formerly Ionix Corporation; and Washington State University was established in 1996 to further the development of BNCT. NTL has established a laboratory for the synthesis, under US FDA approved current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) guidelines, of key boron intermediates and final boron agents for BNCT. The company has focused initially on the development of the compound GB-10 (Na{sub 2}B{sub 10}H{sub 10}) as the first boron agent of interest. An Investigational New Drug (IND) application for GB-10 has been filed and approved by the FDA for a Phase I human biodistribution trial in patients with non-small cell lung cancer and glioblastoma multiforme at UW under the direction of Professor Keith Stelzer, Principal Investigator (PI). These trials are funded by NTL under a contract with the UW, Department of Radiation Oncology, and the initial phases are nearing completion. Initial results show that boron-10 concentrations on the order of 100 micrograms per gram (100 ppm) can be achieved and maintained in blood with no indication of toxicity.

The need for advanced wireless technology has been identified in the National Research Council publication (1) ''Manufacturing Process Controls for the Industries of the Future as a Critical Technology for the Future''. The deployment challenges to be overcome in order for wireless to be a viable option include: (1) eliminating interference (assuring reliable communications); (2) easing the deployment of intelligent, wireless sensors; (3) developing reliable networks (robust architectures); (4) developing remote power (long-lasting and reliable); and (5) developing standardized communication protocols. This project demonstrated the feasibility of robust wireless sensor networks that could meet these requirements for the harsh environments common to the DOE/OIT Industries of the Future. It resulted in a wireless test bed that was demonstrated in a paper mill and a steel plant. The test bed illustrated key protocols and components that would be required in a real-life, wireless network. The technologies for low power connectivity developed and demonstrated at the plant eased fears that the radios would interfere with existing control equipment. The same direct sequence, spread spectrum (DSSS) technology that helped assure the reliability of the connection also demonstrated that wireless communication was feasible in these plants without boosting the transmitted power to dangerous levels. …

The purpose of this report is to provide information needed by the DOE to assess WIPP's environmental performance and to convey that performance to stakeholders and members of the public. This report has been prepared in accordance with DOE Order 231.1A and DOE guidance. This report documents WIPP's environmental monitoring programs and their results for 2003. The WIPP Project is authorized by the DOE National Security and Military Applications of Nuclear Energy Authorization Act of 1980 (Pub. L. 96-164). After more than 20 years of scientific study and public input, WIPP received its first shipment of waste on March 26, 1999. Located in southeastern New Mexico, WIPP is the nation's first underground repository permitted to safely and permanently dispose of TRU radioactive and mixed waste (as defined in the WIPP LWA) generated through the research and production of nuclear weapons and other activities related to the national defense of the United States. TRU waste is defined in the WIPP LWA as radioactive waste containing more than 100 nanocuries (3,700 becquerels [Bq]) of alpha-emitting transuranic isotopes per gram of waste, with half-lives greater than 20 years. Exceptions are noted as high-level waste, waste that has been determined not to require the …

The author spent the period from March 22 to July 10, 1987, at the GAMMA 10 tandem-mirror experiment at the University of Tsukuba in Tsukuba, Japan. The purpose of this extended trip was to install on GAMMA 10 one of the end-loss-ion spectrometers (ELIS) used on TMX-U (Tandem Mirror Experiment-Upgrade) at LLNL and to make plasma measurements there with this diagnostic instrument. This report discusses the considerable planning and preparations that preceded the trip, the actual experience with the ELIS equipment at GAMMA 10, data and results obtained while the author was there, GAMMA 10 experimental procedures, the scientific and technical support during the stay, and some final comments and suggestions concerning an international exchange such as this one. The data acquired on GAMMA 10 while there, along with earlier data, present an encouraging picture of a plasma in a thermal-barrier mode in a tandem-mirror, magnetic-fusion machine. 6 refs.

The studies reported here include conductor current level optimizations at 0.15 T, 2.0 T, 3.0 T, and 3.25 T, maximum conductor fields at 3.25 T, sensitivity of field quality to variations in the magnetic shunt, and effects of up-down asymmetries. This design is characterized by a magnetic shunt which separates the aperture from the primary coils. The current in the three coils, labeled I/sub c'/ I/sub in'/ and I/sub out'/ may be individually controlled. Two configurations of the trim coil, labeled I/sub c'/ were investigated. The three currents are to be used as parameters to control the dipole field value, and to zero the first two allowed harmonic components, the sextupole and decapole.